Written by Aerial Whiting
Six student-directed one- act plays, ranging from the ridiculous to the chilling, will be performed between Feb. 10 and 26 in the Ulrey Performing Arts Center.The first pair of plays,”The Scheme of the Driftless Shifter” and “A Marriage Has Been Arranged,” will show Feb. 10-12. “The Ransom of Red Chief”and”Worldwithout Memory” will show Feb. 17- 19; “The Fall of the House of Usher” and “The Hound of the Baskervilles” will show Feb. 24-26.All theater majors are required to direct a one-act during their junior year.Associate Professor of Theatre Britton Lynn, who is in charge of overseeing the plays this year, said the “raw material,” the scripts, the students are working with is quite strong; among this year’s series of plays are a 15-member cast (“The Scheme of the Driftless Shifter”), which is unusually large for a one-act, and a student-written adaptation of a short story for the stage (“The Ransom of Red Chief “).The directors are in charge of every aspect of their plays: They cast their plays in the fall and have since filled out paperwork, led rehearsals and organized costuming,set design and props. The directors are also in charge of budgeting for their plays; if necessary, they may take out a loan from Campus Players, a campus organizationthat supports the theatre field, to finance their shows. If their shows do not earn enough to cover the cost of the loan, they are held accountable for the remaining amount.Lynn said the rationale behind the directing project is that it is in directing that all aspects of theatrical production converge, allowing students to see from the various viewpoints of those involved in mounting a play.”We [the theater department] want the students to be well rounded in everything so that when the students that come in saying they want to be performers that are professional performers, we say, ‘That’s great. That’s wonderful. We want you to do that. You need to know who it is you’re working with so thatwhen you get out in the real world, you understand what their perspective is,'” Lynn said.Rather than giving the directors free rein to determine which one-act they will direct, the theater department has the students choose several scripts they would be interested in. The professors then choose for the students from among the proposals to make sure the plays complement each other.For example, the professors paired “The Fall of the House of Usher,” based on the short story by Edgar Allen Poe, with “The Hound of the Baskervilles,” based on the Sherlock Holmes novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, even though those were not the first choices of the directors of those plays, junior Marcus Bellamy and senior CassieBennett, respectively.Even though they were not assigned their first choice of plays, Bellamy and Bennett each said they have enjoyed directing them. Bennett said she likes being a director more than she thought she would and that rehearsals are the highlight of her day.”Every day that I have a rehearsal planned, I’m so excited to get to rehearsal because I know that that’s where I’m going to have a good time, that’s where I can relax, that’s where I’m going to laugh,” Bennett said.While Bennett’s and Bellamy’s plays will end the series of one-acts with horror and mystery, “The Scheme of the Driftless Shifter,” will begin the series in mirth. The comedy, directed by senior Logan Kays, is a play about a play that goes horribly awry.Kays said she learned of “The Scheme of the Driftless Shifter” when she wrote a story about it for her high school newspaper. She said she has had a positive experience directing the play and said the project has made her consider directing as a career.”I’ve learned a lot about myself, about other people, about working with other people and personalities, … it has made me consider wanting to do this,” Kays said.Kays, Bennett and Bellamy all said they were excited to present their shows to the public.Tickets will be sold in the Ulrey Performing Arts Center the days of the performances. They are $5 or free with the Pass.
